Welcome to your preview and match thread as the Orlando Pride (2-2-2, 8 points) return home to face the Washington Spirit (3-1-3, 12 points). The Pride are looking to bounce back after a tough loss in Louisville on April 24. This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season, with the return game in Washington, D.C. is scheduled for Aug. 23.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s everything you need to know about today\u2019s game.<\/p>\n
History<\/p>\n
The Pride and Spirit have faced off 29 times since Orlando joined the NWSL in 2016. The Pride are 9-7-6 in regular-season play against Washington and 11-10-8 in all competitions against the Spirit, adding in Challenge Cup and NWSL playoff matchups. Orlando is 5-3-3 in the series in NWSL play at home and 6-4-5 at home against Washington in all competitions.<\/p>\n
The last time these two teams met was on Oct. 18, 2025, in Washington, D.C. and it was an electric game. Kerry Abello opened the scoring in the late in the first half with an own goal, then scored one for her own team three minutes later. Sofia Cantore gave the Spirit the lead just before the half, but then Marta came on. The Pride captain\u2019s shot off Narumi Miura equalized early in the second half and she converted a penalty later, after Ally Watt drew the foul, securing the 3-2 win<\/a>.<\/p>\n The first meeting of 2025 took place on April 19 in Orlando. Gift Monday scored the game\u2019s lone goal in the second half, giving the Spirit the 1-0 win<\/a> and the Pride their first loss of the 2025 season. The teams also played in the NWSL Challenge Cup to kick off the season on March 7 in Orlando. In her first game back since July 6, Rafaelle netted the opening goal to give the Pride a late first-half lead. Leicy Santos equalized in the second half with a terrific strike, and the game finished tied at 1-1<\/a>. The Spirit won the ensuing shootout 4-2 to claim the preseason trophy.<\/p>\n The first meeting of 2024 took place April 26 in Washington, D.C. Angelina gave the Pride the early lead before Ouleymata Sarr equalized shortly before halftime. A Barbra Banda strike and a Summer Yates penalty conversion in the second half seemed to put the game away, but Anna Moorhouse dropped an easy catch from Ashley Hatch\u2019s shot, giving the Spirit a second goal. Fortunately, the Pride held on for the 3-2 win<\/a>, extending their early-season winning streak to three games.<\/p>\n They met a second time on Oct. 6 in Orlando. Despite dominating the game, the Pride didn\u2019t convert until Marta scored early in the second half. An Adriana shot was deflected by Tara McKeown for an own goal later, lifting the Pride to a 2-0 win<\/a> and clinching the NWSL Shield. The Pride and Spirit were the best two teams throughout the season and faced each other in the NWSL Championship on Nov. 23 in Kansas City. Banda\u2019s first-half goal was the difference in the game as the Pride won their first-ever league title<\/a>.<\/p>\n The first meeting of 2023 took place May 10 at Audi Field in NWSL Challenge Cup group play. Tori Hansen gave the Pride a surprising early lead, but late first-half goals by Lena Silano, Sam Staab, and Marissa Sheva made it 3-1 Washington at halftime. Watt scored off the bench early in the second half, but Ashley Sanchez put the game away in injury time as the Spirit won 4-2<\/a>.<\/p>\n The first regular-season matchup of 2023 was held May 20 in Orlando. Marta converted a first-half penalty, but Staab equalized five minutes later. Kylie Strom netted the winner late, and the Pride won 2-1<\/a>. The Pride dominated the Spirit in the second regular-season matchup on July 1. Julie Doyle had a brace in the first 16 minutes and a McKeown own goal put the game out of reach as the Pride won 3-0<\/a>.<\/p>\n The final meeting in 2023 was in the Challenge Cup on Aug. 4 in Orlando. The game appeared to be headed for a scoreless draw until Mariana Speckmaier scored eight minutes into second-half injury time, lifting her team to a 1-0 win<\/a>.<\/p>\n The teams met for the first time in 2022 on May 27 at Exploria Stadium. Trinity Rodman gave the Spirit an early lead and Hatch doubled the advantage after halftime. As the game entered second-half stoppage time, it appeared as though the Pride would fall for the second straight time, but late goals by Mikayla Cluff and Darian Jenkins stunned Washington with a 2-2 draw<\/a>. The teams met again on July 17 at Audi Field, and the Spirit dominated the game statistically but couldn\u2019t find the back of the net, resulting in a scoreless draw<\/a>.<\/p>\n Prior to the draw in May, the Pride and Spirit played two games in the 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup. The first was held March 19 in Orlando, finishing in a scoreless draw<\/a>. The second Challenge Cup meeting came on April 3 at Audi Field. Gunny Jonsdottir scored the team\u2019s first goal in four games. However, the Spirit already had a 3-0 lead. Rodman scored a late goal to put the game away as the Pride fell 4-1<\/a>.<\/p>\n The teams played four times during 2021. On April 21 in the Challenge Cup, Sydney Leroux\u2019s goal was the only scoring as the Pride won 1-0<\/a>. The Pride opened their regular season by hosting the Spirit on May 16. Hatch gave Washington the lead, but Alex Morgan equalized to claim a 1-1 draw<\/a>. The second regular-season meeting that year happened on June 6 in Washington. Hatch opened the scoring, but Taylor Kornieck equalized minutes later, resulting in another 1-1 draw<\/a>. The teams met for the final time in 2021 on Aug. 22 at Audi Field. Marta gave the Pride the lead, but Hatch equalized just two minutes later. It looked like it would be a third straight 1-1 draw, but Sanchez won it for Washington<\/a> late.<\/p>\n Due to the pandemic, the Pride and Spirit didn\u2019t play in 2020 but faced each other three times in 2019. They first met on July 6 in Orlando. Marta scored a brace in the second half, leading the Pride to a 4-3 win<\/a>. They played again on Aug. 24 in Washington. Crystal Thomas gave the hosts the lead and Marta equalized. But Hatch\u2019s goal lifted the Spirit to a 2-1 win<\/a>. The final game was supposed to be the following weekend but was postponed due to Hurricane Dorian. Instead, the game was played Oct. 9 in Orlando. The Spirit dominated the rubber match, beating the Pride 3-0<\/a>.<\/p>\n The first of two meetings in 2018 took place March 31 at the Maryland SoccerPlex. Hatch scored a goal and added an assist in a 2-0 win for the Spirit<\/a>. The Pride got their revenge in the second game in the same location. Alanna Kennedy\u2019s goal was the difference as the Pride won 1-0<\/a>. The final meeting that year was held July 7 in Orlando. Hatch gave the Spirit the lead, but Leroux scored just before halftime and Marta\u2019s goal gave Orlando the 2-1 win<\/a>.<\/p>\n The 2017 season was the first time the teams played three times in a year. Their April 22 meeting was the Pride\u2019s first home game that year. Line Sigvardsen-Jensen gave the visitors the lead, but Danica Evans answered as the teams drew 1-1. They met for the second time that year in Maryland on July 8 when Marta and Mallory Pugh both scored braces in a 2-2 draw. The final game in 2018 was on Aug. 8 in Orlando. Marta, Camila, and Morgan all scored as the Pride ran away with a 3-0 win.<\/p>\n The Spirit swept the first two meetings in 2016, winning 2-0 in Maryland and 2-1 in Orlando.<\/p>\n Overview<\/p>\n The Pride are coming off a difficult game in Louisville, where they let a 2-1 lead get away right after halftime, allowing two quick goals in an eventual 3-2 loss<\/a>. The defeat ended a four-game point streak, which included wins over the Chicago Stars and Angel City and draws against Denver Summit FC and NJ\/NY Gotham FC.<\/p>\n On the positive side, Banda scored her first brace of the season, netting goals in stoppage time of both halves. The goals came despite missing Jacquie Ovalle, who was out with a thigh injury. <\/p>\n The bigger concern in the loss was defensively, as the Pride conceded three goals for the first time this season. Two of those goals came from Lauren Milliet \u2014 who scored the first brace of her career \u2014 split by striker Sarah Weber\u2019s goal just after halftime. The final two and game-deciding goals came three minutes apart and five minutes into the second half. Coming out for the second half as focused as they went into halftime is something the Pride coaching staff has undoubtedly worked on this week.<\/p>\n While the team had three weeks between the win over Angel City and the loss to Racing Louisville, it\u2019s a much shorter time between games this week. The Pride will be happy to get home as they face a Washington Spirit team that\u2019s become a bit of a rival in recent years.<\/p>\n The Spirit sit in third in the NWSL standings on 12 points, seven spots and four points ahead of the Pride. However, while the Pride have a whole week off between games, the Spirit played Wednesday night, hosting Racing Louisville.<\/p>\n The Spirit have been excellent defensively as of late, recording four consecutive clean sheets against the Summit, Bay FC, the Kansas City Current, and Louisville. The back line in front of goalkeeper Sandy MacIver has been the same for all four games, consisting of Kate Wiesner, Esme Morgan, Tara Rudd, and Lucia Di Guglielmo.<\/p>\n Former Pride goalkeeper Aubrey Kingsbury has been Washington\u2019s starter since 2018 and one of the best shot stoppers in the NWSL. However, she announced her pregnancy in February, sidelining her for the season.<\/p>\n In her place is Sandy MacIver. The Scottish international was the starter for Everton from 2020-2022 before backing up Ellie Roebuck, then Khiara Keating at Manchester City. She signed a three-year deal with the Spirit prior to the 2025 campaign, spending the season behind Kingsbury. With Kingsbury on the shelf, MacIver now finds herself in the starting role.<\/p>\n The team is led in the attack by Santos with three goals this year. Two of those three goals came in the team\u2019s drubbing of the Current on April 24. She\u2019s followed by Trinity Rodman with two goals, and Monday, Claudia Martinez, Cantore, and Rebeca Bernal with one goal each.<\/p>\n Santos and Rodman are the two most dangerous attacking players for the Spirit, potentially causing problems for the back line. Limiting their production is key if the Pride hope to claim all three points.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s always a good matchup against Washington,\u201d Pride Head Coach Seb Hines said ahead of today\u2019s game. \u201cWe\u2019ve established some sort of rivalry now, which is always great to be involved in. Two teams that have had a lot of success in the last couple of years. We\u2019re looking to bounce back from a disappointing result against Louisville. Being back home in front of our fans is always important and we have to make sure that we put a show on.\u201d<\/p>\n The Pride will play tonight without Abello (hip), Zara Chavoshi (lower leg), Cosette Morche (ankle), Ovalle (thigh), Kylie Nadaner (maternity leave), and Viviana Villacorta (knee). Additionally, Marta (thigh) is listed as questionable. The Spirit will be without Deborah Abiodun (hip), Hatch (maternity leave), Kingsbury (maternity leave), Casey Krueger (maternity leave), and Sara Wojdelko (hand).<\/p>\n Official Lineups<\/p>\n Orlando Pride (4-2-3-1)<\/p>\n Goalkeeper: Anna Moorhouse.<\/p>\n Defenders: Cori Dyke, Rafaelle, Hailie Mace, Oihane.<\/p>\n Defensive Midfielders: Angelina, Ally Lemos.<\/p>\n Attacking Midfielders: Solai Washington, Haley McCutcheon, Summer Yates.<\/p>\n Forward: Barbra Banda.<\/p>\n Bench: Cara Martin, Nicole Payne, Hannah Anderson, Luana, Marta, Julie Doyle, Reagan Raabe, Seven Castain, Simone Jackson.<\/p>\n Washington Spirit (4-2-3-1)<\/p>\n Goalkeeper: Sandy MacIver.<\/p>\n Defenders: Gabrielle Carle, Esme Morgan, Tara Rudd, Lucia Di Guglielmo.<\/p>\n Defensive Midfielders: Hal Hershfelt, Rebeca Bernal.<\/p>\n Attacking Midfielders: Claudia Martinez, Leicy Santos, Trinity Rodman.<\/p>\n Forward: Sofia Cantore.<\/p>\n Bench: Kaylie Collins, Elisabeth Tse, Kate Wiesner, Madison Haugen, Andi Sullivan, Paige Metayer, Tamara Do Carmo, Rosemonde Kouassi, Gift Monday.<\/p>\n Referees<\/p>\n REF: Shawn Tehini. How to Watch<\/p>\n Match Time: 4 p.m.<\/p>\n Venue: Inter&Co Stadium \u2014 Orlando.<\/p>\n TV: Ion.<\/p>\n Streaming: None.<\/p>\n Social Media: For live updates and rapid reaction, follow @themaneland.bsky.social<\/a> on Bluesky and the Orlando Pride\u2019s official Twitter (@ORLPride<\/a>) or Bluesky (@orlpride.com<\/a>) feed.<\/p>\n Enjoy the game. Go Pride!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome to your preview and match thread as the Orlando Pride (2-2-2, 8 points) return home to face…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":264534,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[139,141,140],"class_list":["post-264533","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264533","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=264533"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264533\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/264534"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=264533"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=264533"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=264533"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
AR1: Noah Kenyawani.
AR2: Ricardo Ocampo.
4TH: Richonne Clark.
VAR: Elton Garcia.
AVAR: Alicia Messer.<\/p>\n